The story follows a young man who falls in love with a woman he thinks is his female co-worker. In the process, he discovers his own computer may have more heart than the woman.

Romeo, a former South Beach boy now living outside L.A., chatted with AWE about his film; his 20-year-career at Disneyland, and his next project.

AWE: Your film, shot on video, 16mm and 35mm formats, is only 24 minutes. But you describe it as an epic love story. How do you make it an epic in such a short amount of time?

TR: It's more epic in what it's saying overall about technology and where we can go and what we can do. It's a small film, but it has very big ideas behind it. It's more of a thinking man's movie. It's not action packed and full of adventure.

AWE: Where did the idea come from?

Photo by Britt Dietz"2095" director Troy Romeo

TR: It was very, very loosely based on a Richard Donner "Twilight Zone" episode he directed called "From Agnes--With Love." I looked at it, and I was thinking, "How could I contemporize it and make it pertinent to today's audience?" I had to update it, put in a plot twist and make it unique to really show me off as a director.

AWE: In the "Agnes" episode, a programmer gradually realizes his computer has fallen in love with him, as the computer messes with his love life. I know your film follows a similar plot, but takes the scenario further. Is that where you think society is headed? Do you think computer companionship will replace human companionship?

TR: This explores all kinds of themes like that. It explores the whole concept of self-awareness. Will a computer ever become aware of its own existence kind of like, "AI?" We've seen computers become kind of life-like in "Blade Runner" and "Bicentennial Man." The way things are going now, with the technology expanding, who knows what the possibilities are?

AWE: You've enjoyed a 20-year career at Disneyland. You wore the costumes for characters for several years, and you are now a stage-hand and foreman for live shows. You're known for having directed "Captain Eeyore," a stage parody of an old 3D movie starring Michael Jackson. How did you pull that off?

TR: It was basically for the character department awards banquet. It's part of history in some sense. You can see it on YouTube. We did it as a tongue-and-cheek thing. We never ran into hot water. The characters are shown in a good light. It's not disparaging.

AWE: You're writing a second draft of a screenplay called "Getting a Script to Peter Sarsgaard." Tell us about it.

TR: It's the script I wrote when I was trying to get the script, "Plastic Has Memory" to him. I want him to star in that. I wrote it when he was doing "The Seagull" [in New York]. It's about the trials and tribulations of trying to get the script to him, getting my car towed, getting my car back. It was unbelievable.

AWE: You're a Curtis High School graduate. You were born in Elm Park, spent most of your childhood in South Beach. But you've been on the West Coast since you earned your bachelor's degree in film production at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles in the '80s. What does it mean to have your work accepted into your hometown festival?

TR: I would have been very disappointed if I wasn't in it. It's going to be an opportunity for a lot of people to see my film and hopefully an opportunity for me to reconnect with a lot of people who maybe lost touch.

The SINY Film Festival unspools June 4-7 at the College of Staten Island.

"2095" screens June 5 at 5 p.m. in the Lecture Hall and June 6 at 4 p.m. n the Lab Theatre. For the trailer, click here.

It is nominated for the SINY Fest's best dramatic short and best science fiction prizes.

All screenings are in the Center for the Arts at the College of Staten Island, 2800 Victory Blvd., Willowbrook. Tickets and passes are available at TicketWeb.com. Options include the $150 super pass, which grants access to all films and special events, excluding the celebrity party; $100 celebrity party tickets; the $45 screening pass for all films only; $15 one-day passes; and $10 individual film tickets.